Now that we’ve all had enough time with the new iPad to separate the facts from the fiction surrounding the device, it’s time to move on to more important matters: The unconfirmed scuttlebutt surrounding Apple’s upcoming hardware and software releases. This week, we're looking at rumors surrounding the MacBook Air, the iPhone 5's probable inclusion of LTE connectivity, and whether or not we'll see a smaller iPad in the near future.

The new iPad will be unleashed upon the public tomorrow! We hope, anyway. As we wait in the bleachers with anticipation for tomorrow morning's event, we're recapping the last bit of rumors to make our own score of what might be in store at Apple's iPad 3 event.

Here's a recap of what we think we know. After all, nothing you hear counts until it's confirmed during a keynote.

Apparently a Sprint version of the iPad is all ready to go and just awaiting the green light from Apple. According to sources, the Sprint iPad will be released alongside the iPhone, which may or may not be the iPhone 5, and could happen as early as October 5.

The report suggests that the Sprint iPad is completely separate from the CDMA Verizon iPad, and could possibly be built to run on Sprint’s robust 4G WiMAX network.

According to "exclusive sources" from BGR, Apple’s carrier partners are testing iPhone models with LTE capability.

BGR allegedly obtained details of an iOS test build from one of Apple’s major carrier partners. Apparently, hidden in the firmware is evidence of LTE support. BGR refers specifically to an LTC property list (.plist file) found inside the build.

As anyone whose jumped from AT&T to Verizon (or vice versa) already knows, GSM and CDMA handsets aren’t compatible with each other. Everything we’ve heard about LTE seemed to indicate that would be a thing of the past, but now Verizon Wireless is going on the record claiming that won’t be the case after all.

While Verizon's LTE network may have been out in various markets for awhile now, an AT&T exec promised that the company will begin to roll out its own fourth-generation LTE technology in 5 markets this summer. First up to bat are Atlanta, Chicago, Dallas, Houston and San Antonio!

Most of us are familiar with the term 3G, which refers to the third generation of wireless technology standards used in the last three models of the iPhone (not to mention every other smartphone produced in recent years). But did you know that a lot of what carriers are currently touting as “4G” is actually just a souped-up version of 3G?

Take a second to think about pure, unadulterated speed. Go ahead -- close your eyes if you need to. What did you think of? The smell of burning rubber on hot race-track asphalt? A fighter jet flashing overhead at breakneck speeds? The face-crushing pull of G-forces on a roller coaster? Now add 4G LTE internet speeds to the list. Damn right, it’s that fast.

Wireless carriers like to toss around technology-laden acronyms such as 3G, EV-DO, HSPA, 4G and LTE as if we all have a degree in rocket science. The reality is, the average person doesn’t have the slightest clue what most of those mean -- so we’ll attempt to cut through the mystery of what some of them mean, beginning with the former, LTE.

Now that U.S. carriers have started rolling out their 4G LTE networks, all eyes are on Apple as we wait to see when the technology might come to the iPhone. A new report claims it’s unlikely to launch until 2012, while production of the current iPhone 4 is slowing down ahead of the next model expected in September.